Let the $5 Chicken Meal War Begin

Popeyes, KFC Each Promote Boxed Meals At Value Price

Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen announced a $5 meal box Monday while KFC is promoting its $5 Fill Up in a new "Fryerside Chat" spot, the latest signs that the $5 mark continues to be a key value play for fast-food chains.

The chicken chains are going head-to-head with slightly different deals. At Popeyes, $5 now buys a Bonafide Big Box that includes two pieces of bone-in-chicken or three chicken tenders; two sides and a buttermilk biscuit. Over at Yum Brands' KFC, the $5 Fill Up comes with a chicken leg and thigh, biscuit, a side item, a medium drink and a cookie.

The $5 proposition is one that fast-food chains often use to signify value. One of the most well-known value deals is Subway's $5 Footlong. Other chains have also used $5 to promote their foods, such as $5 for a box of 20 Chicken McNuggets at McDonald's.

"The $5 price point has been the darling of the quick-service restaurant industry with brands lining up to offer their version of value," Popeyes U.S. Chief Marketing Officer Hector Muñoz said in a statement announcing the limited-time offer, which is supported with a spot from GSD&M, above.

KFC, meanwhile, launched its latest Wieden & Kennedy effort starring Colonel Sanders, who is now played by Norm Macdonald. In the chain's "Fryerside Chats," the character -- based on the founder of the fried-chicken chain -- sits at a desk with a fryer resting on it. In a new spot, Mr. Macdonald calls the $5 Fill Up "an abundant amount of food."

Popeyes Keep Calm Biscuit Shirt Credit: Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen

Popeyes also unveiled an online shop for biscuit-themed apparel in time for September, which is National Biscuit Month. The chain, which sold more than 400 million biscuits last year alone, is now selling apparel including t-shirts with biscuit slogans starting at $19.95.

In their second quarters, which ended in June and July, respectively, U.S. same-store sales rose 3% at KFC and jumped 7.9% at Popeyes.